Hi all! I don’t know how many of you watch Jon & Kate Plus 8 but I was watching it the other day and she made the comment that if you have to use a recipe you aren’t a real cook. I had to laugh at that because as most of you know I use a recipe for almost every meal and in my case dinner would be pretty tasteless if I didn’t use a recipe. If you ask me I’d say that makes me a pretty smart cook, so there Miss Kate!

Have you ladies ever heard of Hungry Girl? I just bought her cookbook and it looks pretty good! It’s full of recipes and survival strategies for guilt-free eating in the real world. You can also find many of her recipes on her website as well as in the newsletter if you sign up for it. I’m not affiliated in any way, I just like a good low-fat recipe when I see it. In fact I’ll be trying one of these recipes this week on Saturday. I LOVE breakfast for dinner….yum yum!

Just a quick note to ask you to please remember to put in spaces when you write your name into Mr. Linky. No spaces causes me the columns to go all wonky. More details here, thanks!

That is a lot of ingredients but it sure sounds good. I have a few “special” meals that are a lot more work than the average ones, but I keep them around and make them every now and then because they are just so good. Try it once and decide if it is worth the trouble.

I’m with you on recipes. Seriously, it just makes life easier. I ‘can’ cook without recipes, but why eat the same things over and over and over? Using recipes allows you to try new, fun and exciting things. I vote yes for recipes!

For the Greek Spag, it looks great. It does look like a lot of ingredients but if you get them all out before (I do this every time I make something) and line them up in order (or rather, in the order you will need them) and group them by steps, it won’t seem like so much. Also, you probably do this but just in case, I always put away the ingredient as I use it. Less clean up after it goes into the oven, skillet, crock pot, etc.

It is a lot of ingredients and I am so busy at the moment that I couldn’t contemplate cooking it! Also if I cook something that takes a bit of preparation and then the kids don’t eat it, I always end up a bit frustrated :) .

The bruschetta chicken sounds fabulous. The Greek spaghetti sounds interesting, but I would probably modify it myself. And it woould probably end up being a completely different dish than what the recipe intended.

I didn’t see that episode, but it is my belief that even seasoned chefs have at least a basic recipe for most of what they cook. They may not follow it exactly, but it is there as a reminder for ingredients. Personally, I love looking at recipes for inspiration, but I almost always change something. Plus, I am not one to measure, just eyeball things.

The Bruschetta Chicken looks delicious. Can’t wait to add it to one of my future menus.

My 11 1/2-year-old daughter LOVES Jon and Kate Plus 8! Apparently, she saw an episode in which the family “went organic”. So, now, of course, she wants to eat only organic foods… because that’s what Jon and Kate (and the 8!) eat. :-Z

That Greek Spaghetti recipe does have a lot of ingredients, but it’s a perfect way to let your kids help. Your daughter can measure the mayo, your little guy can dump the sour cream, etc. In fact, while I’m chopping, Amanda likes gathering the ingredients, and since your kitchen is organized (unlike mine most of the time!) your kids will know right to go to get everything!

There are a lot of recipes I have memorized so I don’t use a recipe…but really, I’m still using one, aren’t I? Smart women use recipes! Sure, we all like to get creative every once in awhile but most recipes are tested by someone else, which saves us that “what if it’s gross” dilemma.

I just put the Hungry Girl book on my BookMooch list!! I’ll have to sign up for the newsletter.

And as for breakfast for dinner, that’s our Monday night regular meal. It’s quick and easy for a Monday night when everyone’s tired from the first day back at work and school, and everyone loves it. Mondays are BRINNER nights in our house. :)

Don’t watch tv much (have even been accused of “abusing” my child for not having any sort of cable!) so no clue who Kate is. Even so, I think someone who makes such a statement is arrogant. Even the greatest cooks/chefs in the world use recipes. Sure, they can cook without a written recipe in front of them (great memories those folks have) but they DO use recipes. And I hate to tell her this, but every time she duplicates one of her own dishes, she’s using a recipe. Her own recipe, stored in her head. Silly woman…

going to check out Hungry Girl! I need to start participating in this. and Kate always says some pretty stupid things on that show, she seems like a bit of a dumbass, I still like the show though, keeps my kids quiet

I’ve never seen that TV show, but the comment about using recipes sounds extremely arrogant. Every cook uses recipes, whether they’re written down or memorized. Even if a cook is trying something totally new, they might still use basic recipes for, say, a white sauce. To create something new, a cook would build off what she knows.

I saw that episode too! I love the show but have to say that wasn’t one of Kate’s finest moments. Especially when she had the meltdown in the kitchen. I would love it if my husband was taking his time to make an elaborate dinner even if it meant sharing kitchen space with him.

I think the spaghetti recipe looks delicious, but I’m with the first commenter on the taste of home site, I would likely add fat free feta and some sliced olives. Lots of ingredients, but it seems like the sauce with the veggies would freeze well, so if (when) I try it, I’ll likely double or triple the sauce, add the veggies to the sauce instead of the pasta and freeze some for future meals. I always use a recipe when trying something the first time (even though I may alter it like I said above) but once I make it I tend to cook from memory or intuition. I love Jon & Kate plus 8 but sometimes she does make some interesting comments ;)

Oh and for the record, I am with you about using recipes and cooking! Very rarely do I cook or bake without using/following some kind of recipe!

As for the greek spaghetti, it is alot of ingredients. However, I see it as someone using what they have on hand to make something from scratch rather than using all premade ingredients(cream of soup, etc.) to put the dish together. Yes I know there is a can of cream of chicken soup in the recipe but I see it as them using it as a base and adding to it rather than using just that. Does that make sense?!

IF my family would eat it I would make the dish and just divide up the ingredients into steps like what another commenter said to do.

No recipes! Seriously! Most of the time I wouldn’t even know where to start! We’d be eating Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, and Baked Chicken all the time. How boring! I may change up a recipe if I don’t have a certain ingredient, but I usually always start with some kind of recipe. To me it is just like starting with a good plan.

gotta love kate sometimes. funny thing is i have seen her look at recipes before. I love looking at recipes, I get new ideas and well at least i know the food wont come out tasty nasty if i try to estimate it all myself.

The greek spaghetti sounds good. I’d personally leave out the pimientos and green peppers and maybe even the celery. I might substitute carrots as those are more liked by my family. But give it a try, then you’ll know what to keep in and what to leave out.

Those lasagna rolls sound really good! I cook all the time without recipes, that’s the way my mom taught me. She’d often make something so delicious, we’d demand that she write it down so she could duplicate it, or else she’d forget. Some of my most delicious and creative meals are made when I am forced to scrounge the freezer and pantry!

That said, I LOVE recipes! I spend far too much time finding new ones. I never feel chained to them though.

That greek spaghetti actually sounds wonderful from reading through the ingrediants. I think I’ll give it a try. Sometimes it’s not as complicated as it sounds. I have a recipe like that but once you do it once it’s a snap the next time.

I watch Jon & Kate sometimes, everytime I do my hubby shudders! He hates that show. In response to her comment about recipes I think it’s a talent to follow a recipe and have dinner turn out excellent! I do have to say everything I have seen her cook on the show looked pretty BORING. Hmmm maybe she should use recipes. Keep up the awesome ideas I love it!

Love your site! I posted my menu the first time, but I’ve been doing Menu Planning Monday for a few weeks…trying to gear up for a new school year (I teach) and starting this new habit. Thanks for the inspiration!

Glad I could do my part to push you past 300! I got out of the menu habit but it’s time to get back INTO the habit!

PS – Everyone who likes to sew, cook or wear aprons is invited to join my apron swap at http://flirtyapronswap.blogspot.com — sign ups end Friday 8/15 and the theme is your partner’s fantasy vacation, What I Wish I Did Over Summer Vacation!

Congrats on the over 300! Sorry I’m late, we were in NYC and ended up having to stay a day later because our return flight got canceled due to weather! Even though the weather there was fine, apparently the weather back home had hail and tornado watches. That put me off on my menu planning. I’m cheating and using Leanne Ely’s “Saving Dinner the Low Carb Way”. But that’s ok. It’s a tasty way to do it.

Anyway, I’m glad your own trip’s weather turned out nice. I know that a lot of people on the WW boards love the Bruschetta Chicken. And the Greek Spaghetti looks good, but it does look like a lot of ingredients. As to the recipe comment. I must admit, I use a recipe as a shopping list. Hubby is always commenting, “This is good, how did you change it from the original?” ;)

I posted my menu for next week in the Mr. Linky – or at least I think that I did. Hope I did it correctly. Congratulations on all the participants. You’ll probably be over the 300 now that you posted that more people were probably inspired to post, I know I was.

I can see where Kate is coming from. Maybe she meant a recipe for EVERY meal?

I never measure anything while cooking. baking is another thing, you have to be exact in baking. Cooking you go by taste. I wonder if people really only add 1/4 tsp of salt or whatever, come on. It’s a few shakes of the salt shaker.

I’ve learned to just throw things together to make a salad dressing or whatever. I’ve learned to be creative. A recipe could be just a list of ingredients, no one really goes by how much of that.